It was a quiet weekend in Major League Soccer with most teams being off during the international break. In fact, there's been only three matches since my last playoff update, but despite that, a lot has happened.
The scenarios that get determine whether the Dynamo are in or out of the playoffs are still a little confusing, but there's the basics. Even if Houston gets six points in the final two matches, DC United could still knock them out of the playoffs. If Portland and Houston end up tied for the final playoff spot, Houston will have the tiebreaker with a win or draw against the Timbers on the 14th. If the Timbers win and they still end up tied, goal differential is the next tiebreaker. In the end, DC United controls their own fate, if they win all four of their remaining matches, it doesn't matter what Houston or Portland does. If they begin to drop more points, it gets interesting.
Results:
Vancouver Whitecaps 3 - 0 Real Salt Lake
New England Revolution 1 - 2 San Jose Earthquakes
Seattle Sounders 0 - 2 Philadelphia Union
Playoff Standings:
| Team | Points (Max Potential Points) | Games Played (of 34) | Points Per Game | GD |
| ss-LAG (W1) | 64 (70) | 32 | 2.00 | 21 |
| x-SEA (W2) | 57 (66) | 32 | 1.78 | 17 |
| x-RSL (W3) | 51 (57) | 32 | 1.59 | 8 |
| PHI (E1) | 47 (53) | 32 | 1.47 | 9 |
| SKC (E2) | 45 (51) | 32 | 1.41 | 7 |
| CREW (E3) | 44 (50) | 32 | 1.38 | -3 |
| FCD (WC1) | 46 (55) | 31 | 1.48 | 2 |
| COL (WC2) | 45 (51) | 32 | 1.41 | 2 |
| NYRB (WC3) | 43 (49) | 32 | 1.34 | 7 |
| HOU (WC4) | 43 (49) | 32 | 1.34 | 0 |
| POR | 40 (49) | 31 | 1.29 | -6 |
| DCU | 38 (50) | 30 | 1.27 | 0 |
| CHI | 37 (46) | 31 | 1.19 | 0 |
| z-CHV | 36 (42) | 32 | 1.13 | 1 |
| z-SJ | 35 (41) | 32 | 1.09 | -6 |
| z-TFC | 31 (37) | 32 | 0.97 | -23 |
| z-NE | 27 (37) | 32 | 0.84 | -17 |
| z-VAN | 25 (34) | 31 | 0.81 | -18 |
ss - Supporter's Shield
x - Clinched Playoff Spot
z- Eliminated from Playoffs
Upcoming Matches:
Home team listed first
Result in parenthesis is best outcome for the Dynamo
Wednesday, October 12th
Chicago Fire v FC Dallas (Push, No Best Option for Dynamo)
Vancouver Whitecaps v DC United (VAN win)
Friday, October 14th
Colorado Rapids v Real Salt Lake (RSL win)
Portland Timbers v Houston Dynamo (HOU win)